Batman: KNIGHTFALL FILES 1: Demon & Knight
by MrManiac
Summary: First on a series of stories that´ll be placed in diferent points of the Knights trilogy storyline.


DIsclaimers: All characters belong to DC Comics.   
No money was made with this story.  
Batman created by Bob Kane.  
This the first of a series of stories that will focus on the "Knight" trilogy.  
Hope you like them.  
  
  
  
THE KNIGHTFALL FILES 1 : DEMON & KNIGHT -(Robin #7)-  
  
Wayne Manor is a mess. Outside, Bruce and Tim are standing and talking.   
It´s not a nice chat what they are having.   
When Bruce hears the news his eyes open wide. Then his face gets dark.  
  
"Tim... you´re saying... he killed Abattoir?"  
  
Bruce looks at his house. It looks like hell. Windows broken.   
An abandoned place. Then he steps forward, trying to understand what went wrong.  
A mistake. He has made a big mistake. Probably the worst mistake of his life.  
  
"And all this... Why didn´t you tell me? I thought I left things in capable hands.  
But this..."  
  
Tim scratchs his head. He tries to avoid Bruce´s eyes. He is feeling guilty and  
angry with Jean Paul, with himself for not stopping him when he let Abbatoir die.  
He is tired and, now, his mentor is mad at him.   
  
"You couldn´t have done anything. And then you started talking about retiring..."  
  
"I had to know, Tim! I let you here as my consciencie.   
You were supossed to handle any problems."  
  
"But I´m not you, Bruce. I tried going up against him once and he nearly killed me!.  
He sealed the Batcave. He´s even had some run-ins with the police."  
  
Bruce is not happy. He looks again at his father´s house.  
What kind of beast is wearing the mantle of the Bat?  
He was ready to be Bruce Wayne. He was ready to retire. And now...  
  
Now he is going to become what he was before...  
  
Before Bane broke him.  
  
"You say he sealed the cave."  
  
"Every entrance I know of, Bruce"  
  
There´s another entrance. Remember, Bruce?   
You fell in it when you were six years old. And you something down there,  
Something that scared the hell outta you.  
But you won´t be using it now.  
  
No. Not now.  
  
"Then we make an entrance." Bruce expression is even darker now.  
  
*******************  
  
"There!"  
  
The hammer hit the wall for the last time.  
  
"It looks like he never comes up here. We´ll have to go down for him."  
  
"The place is not the same since you left, Bruce. There may be traps..."  
  
I took ten minutes for Bruce to break the bricked wall that covered the entrance  
to the Batcave using a hammer. The clock was destroyed during the fight with Bane.   
So, Jean Paul decided to put bricks at the entrance.   
  
No camouflage.   
  
No clock.   
  
Nothing.   
  
Just bricks.  
  
Darkness was all around them when they began the descent.   
  
A true descent to hell.  
  
"He´s not here."  
  
Tim pressed a button on the computer and the cave was filled with light.  
  
"Power´s up." said Tim.  
  
"Here´s the Batmobile... Where the hell is he?"  
  
Robin looked at the cold cup of cofee near the keyboards. It moved.  
  
"He doesn´t use the car that much anymore.   
He´s got another way of getting around town. I wonder how he..."   
  
The cup of coffee moved. A lot.  
  
Behind them. Somewhere in the deeps of the cave. A Rumbling.  
Something like a jet engine.  
  
Bruce was silent. Waiting.   
Then a shadow appeared. A demon´s shadow.  
  
"He´s back..." Robin gasped.  
  
"He´s back allright..."  
  
****************************  
  
"You tripped the alarms."  
  
Jean Paul´s new costume is amazing. It has nothing of the old design.  
More armor than cloaking. A weapon.   
A weapon that looks like a costume.  
  
"What are you doing here Wayne?"  
  
"Look at you. You look like what you´ve become. A monster!"  
  
Jean Paul does not seem to care about Bruce´s words.  
Instead he seems only interested on them leaving the damn cave.  
  
"You have a valid reason for coming here?"  
  
"Yes. I do. I´m taking back the mantle of the bat before you spill   
anymore blood on it. You don´t deserve it. You never did."  
  
Silence.  
  
Then laughter. Jean Paul laughs.  
Batman is laughing.  
  
A strange, creepy laugh. There is something wrong with this new Batman.  
  
"You left me with a city to protect. I did it as I saw fit.  
I do what I do and decent human life is saved.   
How many people would have lived if you had stopped Poison Ivy?   
Or the Joker?  
Or Bane?   
They are demons, destroying Gotham, and I´m here as it´s dark savior.  
You can´t judge me, Wayne... Maybe you can´t bear the fact that it´s you  
who never deserved to wear this cowl..."  
  
Bruce moves towards Batman  
  
"I´ve heard just about enough, Paul..."  
  
Paul catchs Bruce´s hand without any effort. A punch that never reached it´s destiny.  
  
"Not Paul. Ever again... I AM THE BATMAN!"  
  
With incredible power Bruce is shoved aside. He falls down and hits his head with the computer panel.  
  
  
"I WILL ALWAYS BE THE BATMAN! AND NO ONE, SAINT OR DEVIL, CAN TAKE IT FROM ME!"  
  
The monster turns and gets inside the car. Something inside of him  
Anger? Maybe. Fear? Of what?  
  
"Don´t be here when I get back, Wayne. Or you´ll meet the Batman´s wrath."  
  
Bruce´s head is bleeding. He seems surprised and he´s muttering words.  
  
"Bruce, your head is..."  
  
"It´s nothing... I´ve to think, I have to make decisions..."  
  
The batmobile leaves the cave like a demon from hell. Roaring.  
  
Inside it the man in the armor that looks like a bat is laughing   
but he does not realize it.  
  
*****************************  
  
Robin got out and used his car to follow Jean Paul. Meanwhile Bruce sat and meditated in the cave.  
  
His back was healed. But he had lost his edge.   
The fact was that Bane not only crippled him.   
It took him a whole life to became Batman.   
Could he ever became Batman again?   
Bane had reduced him to nothing.   
  
How could he return?  
  
"Bruce Wayne." he said in a low voice.   
  
Bruce stood up and extended his hand in the air.  
He was ready to retire.   
He was going to be only one person to the rest of his life.  
But, with this situation...  
  
"Hi, I´m BRUCE WAYNE. I´m pleased to meet you." he said with a smile full of anguish.  
  
With this psycho wearing the mantle of the bat...  
  
He put his hands on his head. How? How?  
  
Then an idea came to him.   
  
So easy.   
  
So clear.   
  
So Dangerous.  
  
"Shiva."  
  
Bruce sat at the computer. It took him a while, but he located her.  
She was very near of Gotham. Her. Killer. Fearless woman.  
  
Shiva.  
  
Lady Shiva.  
  
Bruce stood up and walked to the stairs. As he was ascending he smiled.  
  
"So, it begins." he said to himself.  
  
Behind him the bats made noise. Bruce turned and looked at them.  
He was home again. Not ready, but he was home.  
  
"Hello, again. See you soon."   
  
  
END 


End file.
